India, VN target faster, better quality growth

Update:
January, 22/2015 - 09:42

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Indian enterprises introduce their textiles products to a Vietnamese customer at an exhibition in HCM City. Viet Nam and India have organised several trade fairs and exhibitions to boost bilateral trade in textiles. — VNA/VNS Photo Kim Phuong

HCM CITY (VNS) — India and Viet Nam have huge potential for co-operation in many sectors including textiles, drugs, and information technology, India's top commerce official told a bilateral business forum in HCM City yesterday.

Commerce Secretary Rajeev Kher, who is leading a delegation of 50 business executives to Viet Nam to explore business opportunities from January 18 to 22, said while bilateral trade had grown successfully there was always scope for faster and better quality of growth.

The two countries planned to double the current figure of US$8 billion in the next five years.

India had strengths in many areas like textile and garment, pharmaceuticals, leather and footwear, agricultural products, engineering products, information technology and related services and professional services like architecture.

Viet Nam was among the world's leading garment exporters but imported a lot of raw materials for production, while India had strengths in raw cotton, cotton yarn, and other raw materials, and so strengthening co-operation between Indian suppliers and Vietnamese garment manufacturers could benefit both.

India was today recognised as a major drug producer and supplies medicines to many markets, including the US, EU and Japan.

Viet Nam consumed drugs worth around $3 billion a year, but its imports from India were very modest.

Opportunities were also seen in the IT sector and infrastructure.

India and Viet Nam had to come together, complementing each other's capacity both for the purpose of improving bilateral trade and contributing to global economic growth.

Do Huu Huy, deputy director general of the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Africa and South West Asia Market Department, said trade ties between the two countries have grown strongly in recent years.